Evolution of power line communications: From a fixed telephone system to telecommunication technology of smart energy grid

 Power line communications (PLC) technology utilizes the power grid infrastructure and its wiring as a communications channels for information transmission and reception. No need to install of new structure and wiring together with the wide spread availability and easy accessibility of power grids are the main reasons for appearance and development of this technology over the years. Nowadays, one century after the discovery of this technology, existing PLC systems can be subdivided under three main classes of ultra-narrowband, narrowband and broadband systems, where, each one has been dedicated for a special application and is based on a specific standard. Within the framework of aforementioned grouping, this paper provides a comprehensive study on the historical evolution of this technology which includes from the historical review, advantages, telecommunication challenges and application areas of this technology to the presentation of worldwide standardization projects, equipment and their providers, and its key role on making the future gird smarter.